Rubber footwear



March l2, 1935. N. E. ToUsLEY RUBBER FOOTWEAR Filed March s1; 1935 @E uwE Patented Mar. 12, 1935 UNITED STATES RUBBER FOOTWEAR Nelson E.Tousley, Waban, Mass., assigner to Hood Rubber Company, Inc., Watertown,Mass., a corporation of Delaware Application March 31, 1933, Serial No.663,715

1 Claim.

This invention relates to rubber footwear, and especially to rubberboots or shoes which are used where oil or other rubber-swellingsubstance is likely to contact the surface thereof.

In such places as garages and oil service stations rubber boots havebeen found desirable to wear by attendants for their protection againstoil, water, grease and other substances encountered in those places,but, as constructed heretofore, rubber boots have not been whollysatisfactory for this purpose because of the fact that when suchsubstances as oil or gasoline come in contact with the rubber surface ofthe boot the rubber is caused to swell and become soft and weakened instrength, whereupon it is not in a condition to resist permanentdistortion under iiexure or to provide the wear ordinarily expected ofthe boo-t, and objectionable permanent distortion rendering the bootuncomfortable tothe wearer, and sometimes premature failure, result.

The chief objects of this invention are to provide for effectivelyresisting such distorting and weakening effects resulting from theswelling of the rubber of footwear in contact with rubberswellingsubstances, to provide such protection without materially detractingfrom the flexibility or neat appearance of the footwear, and to providefor economy and convenience in the manufacture of the same.

These and further objects will be apparent from the followingdescription, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective View of a boot embodying the invention in itspreferred form.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged section taken along the line 2--2 of Fig. 1.

Figs. 3 and 4 are fragmentary sections taken along the same line as thatof Fig. 2, but showing modified constructions.

Referring to the drawing, a rubber boot having the usual lining 11 is,according to the invention, provided with a piece of fabric 12, whichmay be of fibrous material, preferably square-Woven and of strong warpand weft strands, adhered to the outer surface of the rubber andcovering the front foot portion of the boot Where the boot is mostlikely to come into contact with oil or other rubber-swelling substance,and where flexture and abrasive wear are most severe.

The fabric 12 is preferably embedded in the surface of the rubber asillustrated in Fig. 2, and desirably so that the rubber extends into theinterstices of the fabric and is securely interlocked therewith. Thislessens the likelihood of separation of the fabric from the rubber whenthe adhesion is lessened by the action of oil, the fabric having a gripon the rubber by the interlocking engagement.

While the fabric does not prevent contact of the o-il with the rubber itserves to guard the surface of the rubber from abrasion, which isimportant when the rubber is swoolen and softened by the oil, andobjectionable swelling and softening of the rubber at its surface areapparently lessened, especially as the fabric restricts swelling of therubber in the direction along the surface and thereby curtails warpingof the boot wall and softening of the rubber at its surface with theresult of lessening its vulnerability to abrasive wear. Also, besidesretaining the surface rubber against swelling, the fabric servesasa-net-like reinforcement restraining particles of the rubber from beingseparated from the rubber body, and further, the fabric resistspermanent distortion of the softened rubber under the severe flexure ofportions of the fore part of the boot in use.

In order to avoid excessive localized iiexure at the upper margin of thefabric, the fabric is preferably scalloped or serrated at this margin asshown at 13.

The desired firm embedding of the fabric in the surface of the rubbermay be effected by molding, preferably by assembling the boot parts,including the rubber 10 and the fabric 12, upon an expansible last, andby means of fluid pressure within the last, distending the latter andforcing the boot against the surface of an enclosing heated mold to moldand vulcanize the boot.

In some cases it may be desirable to anchor the margins of the fabricmore securely than simply by surface embedding, and this may be effectedas shown at 14 and l5 of the modifications of Figs. 3 and 4, byembedding the fabric margins entirely within the body of the rubberwhere it is unlikely to be loosened or separated from the rubber by theaction of a rubber-softening substance. The likelihood of peeling of thefabric at its margins is thus minimized and the ability of the fabric toresist swelling of the rubber and objectionable distortion of the bootis increased.

By the above-described constructions, the rubber surface of the boot isprotected as described, and the adequate flexibility and the neatappearance of the boot are preserved.

I claim:

A rubber boot for use in contact with a rubberswelling substance, saidboot comprising a rub-4 ber body of substantial thickness and aswell-resisting element of fabric embedded in the outer surface of thebody and extending from the sole margin of the boot at the toe tol theregion of the ankle portion and terminating there in a serrated margin,the rubber body extending into the interstices of the fabric, wherebydistortion .of the rubber at its outer surface under the action of therubber-swelling substance is resisted.

NELSON E. TOUSLEY.

